With patients suffering from pulmonary diseases, aerosols are often used for therapy. However, special difficulties arise with the utilization of aerosols with patients receiving artificial respiration. Either compressed-air operated nozzle atomizers or atomizers producing aerosols continuously, such as, e.g., ultrasound atomizers or piezoelectric atomizers are used. The nozzle atomizers are normally placed in the common end segment for inspiration and expiration of the artificial respiration hoses, shortly before the tube barrel and are controlled via the artificial respirator, so that they are active only during inspiration. An atomizer is, however, active until the end of inspiration, so that in the overall hose system distal gas enriched with aerosol is present in the atomizer so that the dead-space volume is also provided with aerosol. Thus, it is possible as a rule to place a bacterial filter between the inspiration or expiration legs and the tube barrel, playing also a role in humidifying the respiratory tracts. The heavy humidification of the non-utilized gas column (dead space volume), mostly with large aerosol particles, causes the filter to become filled with liquid and thus loses its antibacterial effect on the one hand, while, on the other hand, the resistance of the filter increases so much that it closes up.
The continuous atomizers such as, e.g., ultrasound atomizers or piezoelectric atomizers produce smaller particles (average size less than 7 μm) that reach the point of utilization more easily, resulting in fewer side effects and lower drug costs. However, these devices can only be placed in the inspiration leg of an artificial respirator since they produce aerosols continuously and would thus convey aerosols to or from the patient during the inspiration as well as during the expiration phase. A filter would, therefore, fill up and lose effectiveness or close up. By omitting a filter, insufficient humidification of the breathing or inhaled air results so that a breathing-air humidifier has to be used which, in addition to costs, also involves a hygienic problem (nosocomial pneumonia). Accordingly, an object of the invention is to create a device in combination with aerosol-producing atomizers that can avoid the foregoing described problems.